Vets stays unbeaten, tops N. Cumberland in quarters

SWINGING AWAY: Warwick Vets’ Alayna Medina takes a swing at the plate against North Cumberland.

(Photo by Alex Sponseller)

STAYING PERFECT: Warwick Vets’ Gillian Brown runs through first base after picking up a hit during the Hurricanes’ 8-1 win over North Cumberland in the Rhode Island Middle School Softball Quarterfinals at Vets.

(Photo by Alex Sponseller)

Warwick Vets’ catcher Genna D’Amato hauls in a pitch from behind the plate against North Cumberland. The Hurricanes remained undefeated with the win and will now take on Cranston’s Western Hills in the state semifinals. The Hurricanes picked up the 5-2 win in the clubs’ first matchup earlier in the regular season.

(Photo by Alex Sponseller)

Posted
Tuesday, June 11, 2019 1:24 pm

By ALEX SPONSELLER

The Warwick Vets softball team continued to dominate this season, extending its undefeated season with an 8-1 win over North Cumberland in the state quarterfinals last week at home.

The Hurricanes fired on all cylinders in the win, and would get a gem from pitcher Alyssa Twomey, who finished the day with 14 strikeouts in the circle.

“She did great today. She told me, ‘I want to pitch the entire game today,’ so I gave her the ball and she did it. She had some trouble in the fifth there and we thought maybe she was getting a little tired, but she came back strong in the sixth and then closed it out,” said Vets coach Rich Hough after the win.

The Hurricanes were scoreless through the first two innings, but would take off in the third and score five runs.

Vets would have a run walked in, then Genna D’Amato knocked in another the following at bat. Twomey then hit a 2-run single, followed by Sophia Chevian with an RBI single.

Gillian Brown and D’Amato would then pick up RBI in the fourth to extend the lead to 7-1, and would go on to get one more run on a sacrifice fly by D’Amato in the sixth.

“It took us awhile to start hitting, we had a little bit of trouble (adjusting to) the slower pitching, we weren’t used to that. We started to sit back on it a little more and then we started hitting and scoring runs. We got the win and we needed it, that was big,” said Hough.

The Hurricanes have boasted the top offense in the state this spring, averaging double-digit points per game. Being aggressive, while also patient, at the plate and on the basepaths has led to their success, according to Hough.

“It was contagious. One of them would get a hit, then it would be two, three, four of them. We have a great hitting team. I told them that perseverance pays off and all it takes is for one girl to get a hit, and then things would take off. A walk is as good as a hit, we’ve heard that a million times, but it’s true,” said Hough. “Just to get those baserunners on, to move them around the bases, that causes pressure. We can hit for power but we can also play small ball and run the bases. It worked out for us.”

Vets will now take on Western Hills, who they topped in a tough 5-2 win in the regular season, in the semifinals, and hope to continue to play its best softball on the biggest stage.

“We need to treat it like a championship game. We played a championship game today, we have one against Western Hills, and then hopefully one more in the state championship. I just want us to go out there and play the best that we can,” said Hough. “If we play our best and lose then it is what it is, but if we play our best and win, that’s what we want.”

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